Friday, February 22, 2019

It has been one of those seasons. Trying to figure out where things are at (metaphorically and literally). For example. This morning I finished up the next big design for release. Reproduction style prayer that has been often requested. I bought a frame for it before the move. It's a 16x20 frame. There aren't that many places it could be hiding or boxed or placed!!! It is likely somewhere in the garage, but at this point I'm justifying a trip to Hobby Lobby to replace it because I can't put my hands on it right now and I'm anxious to get it framed. I probably unpacked it and put it somewhere completely logical (at the time).

I've also been getting things ready for the new year of trunk shows and fun with models. I've been updating charts, correcting information for companies that have sold or moved, and playing with colors on some of my older small designs. I'll take those along as car projects. This beauty will be travelling in the 2019 trunk show:

It is MBT-213 Choose Joy, done on 30 ct. Weeks Dye Works linen with red, green and bronze threads. I wanted to show this design in a square frame, instead of the round on the model, and show how much the feel of a design can change by tinkering with the colors. The original:

The floral round series has been so much fun for me. The simple phrases reflect what I am going through and what I am holding to.

It has also been the time of preparing new inventory for the trunk shows assortments and testing out new accessories. The rabbit regal pins have been a great success and I just started working on a new pin - oh, deer!

It isn't the web ready picture but he's just so cute I had to share :-)

Friday, February 1, 2019

February sneaked up on me... It seems like January was just yesterday. Oh, wait, it was! Would it be fair to say that it seems like January of 2018 was just yesterday? Our year is speeding by. Doodlebug is taking on new projects and it is keeping me out of the house for most days of the week. My truck has become a mobile office and I am getting a lot of stitching done on smaller projects. I do miss working on the big prayer design that is on my stand at home. Today I managed five whole stitches on it before I was distracted. That's life :-) Now, on to the new!!!

MBT-219 Still Waters

I just don't think there could ever be enough of the 23rd Psalm hanging on my walls or saturating my life each day. When I'm feeling bone weary I know I can find restoration in Him. Model stitched on 28 ct. jobelan with Weeks Dye Works thread. It is a companion design to MBT-183 Trust in Him, MBT-192 Hope and a Future, and MBT-211 My Soul Finds Rest.

MBT-220 I Should Quit

Am I the only one with days like this. The days when you have major car repairs, pay the bill, and a coupon for the repair place arrives in the mail that afternoon (no kidding, that was my day today)... Today may be a good day to just quit! Through the move I have felt like I am always three steps behind. Yet I keep striving to get ahead of it all. At some point I should probably quit while I'm behind and just stitch. Model stitched on 32 ct. jobelan with Weeks Dye Works thread. It will perfectly fit a 5x7 frame when stitched on 32 ct.

MBT-221 Cherish Friends

The past few months have been pretty raw with leaving a lot of friends in Idaho. It is a good thing we now have unlimited text because I can't go a few hours without pestering one (or more!) of them. This design, the third in the circle series, reminds me to cherish each friend and the time with them. Model stitched on 32 ct. linen with Gentle Art Sampler Threads. It is a companion design to MBT-213 Choose Joy and MBT-217 Love Completely (and a fourth one was started this week!)

MBT-222 Fowl Friends

And back to the snark. Oh, boy, does this design have a story behind it. It all started with a coyote attack. This past summer my chickens were doing their free range chicken thing - eating bugs, fertilizing the yard, and being happy. In the middle of the day a dear friend came over and interrupted the destruction of my flock. Out of my eight hens, we found three dead, one severely injured, and three in the coop. One was missing. Dear friend gave me the best comfort she could - hope. She told me about Schrodinger's Cat. It is the idea (on the most basic level) that without confirming that the chicken was alive or dead, I could believe that it was alive because I couldn't know for certain. The missing hen did find her way home, much to my relief. For the injured hen, one friend brought her husband over to give the bird eleven stitches while the friend who helped me scour the property for an hour to locate the birds assisted that day and came back every day for a week to help me give her daily antibiotic injections. For a chicken. This brings us to Schrodinger's Chicken. I got a mood in early December that I needed to do something special for my two fowl helping friends. I made this little framed piece for each of us. Above the hens are vibrant and alive, below... well... It is a little twisted but that is why it comes with two other very sweet designs! I miss my chickens, my fowl friends, and this is a celebration of them. Chicks rule! Models stitched on 32 or 36 ct. linen with Weeks Dye Works thread.

Now for the accessories:

Funky Chunky VII

Regal Pins - Spring Tulip

Regal Pins - Bunny Love

Specialty Bead Fob Bunny Love

Regal Pins - Elephant Dance

Specialty Bead Fob Elephant Dance

Bronze Rabbit Hat Pins in Pink and Green

Needle Minder Art Deco

Mini Needle Minder Bronze Butterfly

Needle Minder Valentine

Mini Needle Minder Flamingo

There is life in a nutshell! Blessings to you in your stitching endeavors.

About Me

My Big Toe Designs is a Christian design company of cross stitch patterns and needlework accessories. We are a family business, and it's all hands on deck to produce a beautiful line of stitching goodies to satisfy your addictions.